California secretaries of state have historically exercised their due diligence by reviewing necessary background documents, verifying that the candidates that were submitted by the respective political parties as eligible for the ballot were, indeed, eligible. In 1968, the Peace and Freedom Party submitted the name of Eldridge Cleaver as a qualified candidate for president of the United States. The then-Secretary of State, Mr. Frank Jordan, found that, according to Mr. Cleaver’s birth certificate, he would be only 34 years old at the time of the general election, one year shy of the 35 years of age needed to be on the ballot as a candidate for president.

There now exists a similar situation to that in which California secretaries of state have removed presidential candidates from the ballot in the past, namely that the Democratic Party has submitted Barack Hussein Obama, Jr., as a Democratic Party candidate for president, when he is arguably ineligible for the office.